Pat Quinn is gone, but not forgotten by his friends in the Senators dressing room.

"I'm sure he'll pop up somewhere," said Senators winger Chris Neil when asked if he'd miss Quinn, who was fired yesterday by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Quinn has been a thorn for the Senators in the playoffs, but the Leafs went just 1-7 against Ottawa this season.

"He's an excellent coach," said Senators coach Bryan Murray. "I don't think you get the opportunity to coach Team Canada at the Olympics and the chance to coach a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs for that number of years without being an excellent coach. You saw at the end of the year when he got the young guys playing, the team played very well. If he wants to coach further, somebody's going to get a heck of a coach."

Tampa coach John Tortorella was shocked.

"I have the ultimate respect for Pat Quinn," said Tortorella. "I see a coach go and I just don't agree with it."

REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE: With the Binghamton Senators eliminated from the AHL playoffs, Ottawa recalled G Kelly Guard, D Filip Novak, F Denis Hamel and C Steve Martins yesterday. The Senators' playoff roster includes four goalies and 24 skaters. It should be noted G Dominik Hasek skated for 20 minutes yesterday, then left the ice.